Triple Crown: Must-see TV?

Sunday marks the first of two scheduled dates for TV crews to film Triple Crown World Series championship games.

This weekend, a crew from Metro Sports of Kansas City, Mo., will be taping the championship games in the 10-and-under and 13-and-under brackets at the Division 1 level. The crew is expected to arrive today to begin preparations for filming at Howelsen Hill.

The 10-and-under final is at 11 a.m. Sunday, and the 13-and-under final is at 2:30 p.m. Sunday. Both games will be on Vanatta Field at Howelsen Hill.

Last year, Triple Crown Sports experimented with taping the championship games and distributing the productions throughout the country. The results were positive. This year, Triple Crown has "upgraded production," said Thad Anderson, Triple Crown's director of baseball.

Altitude, which regularly televises Denver Nuggets and Colorado Rockies games, already has agreed to televise the Triple Crown finals 16 times in the Rocky Mountain region. Of course, this weekend's field features teams from across the country, and Triple Crown will work on distributing the games to the appropriate regions.

Next weekend, Metro Sports will film the championship games in the 12-and-under and 14-and-under divisions. Both games are at the same times and location as this weekend's finals.

There is no admisison fee to watch Sunday's finals, and Triple Crown will have cash and prize giveaways for those who choose to fill the stands for the TV taping.

"The more the better," Anderson said. "We do have good giveaways."

Specific dates and times for the rebroadcasts are not available, including the times for Altitude's airings, but fans and participants are encouraged to check local listings for updates.

The first of three sessions of the Triple Crown World Series began Wednesday in Steamboat, Craig, Hayden and Oak Creek. More than 100 teams from more than a dozen states are in Northwest Colorado for the five-day tournament.